


Underneath Some Plastic Holly

by AkisMusicBox



Category: Persona 3
Genre: Christmas, Don't copy to another site, F/M, Mistletoe, School Dances, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-13
Updated: 2019-12-13
Packaged: 2021-02-24 16:54:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21781264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AkisMusicBox/pseuds/AkisMusicBox
Summary: "The culture festival getting canceled was a real bummer for a lot of students, especially the seniors! The student council wasn't able to recover everything we invested in for the festival, but at least a smaller version, with food and dancing will do a lot to pull everyone out of this slump."The student council decides to host a winter dance. Akihiko can'tnotattend, even if Minako will be working the whole time.
Relationships: Arisato Minako/Sanada Akihiko
Comments: 4
Kudos: 66





	Underneath Some Plastic Holly

**Author's Note:**

> Once again, thank you to to TataBanchou for showing me [this tweet](https://twitter.com/personaparadise/status/1204532496983085061?s=20) and humoring me while I was like, "But what if they DID?! But with zero beautiful graphics and more words."

Akihiko wandered through the crush of students and tugged at his scarf. He didn't want to be here by himself, but there wasn't a way he _wasn't_ coming. He just wished he would have had someone to hang out with. Yukari tried to get him to walk with the rest of the team from the dorms, but he had declined, deciding to head straight to the hospital after a short practice. He needed to talk to Shinjiro, even if Shinjiro couldn't talk back. _Not like he'd have any good advice if he was awake. He'd just call me an idiot, and tell me to stay away from the doorways._

Fake mistletoe was _everywhere_ in the hallway and in the practice room. He thought only couples were supposed to use it, but tonight, everyone seemed _rowdy_ in comparison to the general malaise that had hung over the school. Winter and Apathy Syndrome had taken a toll on the morale of the school and the students seemed to have decided that _this_ was the perfect opportunity to blow off steam. People he was very sure weren't dating were finding excuses to hang out under the mistletoe, dance too closely, and laugh too loudly. And the faculty advisers were _allowing it_. Even Mitsuru was turning a blind eye, because at least people attended, and they were having fun.

_"The culture festival getting canceled was a real bummer for a lot of students, especially the seniors! The student council wasn't able to recover everything we invested in for the festival, but at least a smaller version, with food and dancing will do a lot to pull everyone out of this slump."_ Minako had said as she threw her hair over her shoulder. He wondered if her eyes would have become puppy-like, or if she'd have touched his arm if they were in private, but in front of his boxing teammates, she had remained professional. Informational. Two leaders discussing what was best for the school. _"Besides, your team has been doing great lately, I'm sure they could use a few shorter practices and a dance."_ She had peeked over Akihiko's shoulder and winked at one of the boxers rubbernecking on their conversation. Akihiko had caught the boy blushing before he turned away and grabbed a jump rope.

So he agreed to let the student council use their practice room to hold the dance. He would have agreed without any of her arguments, because his girl had asked him, and he wasn't going to let her down, no matter how much it twisted his gut. She had to put up a compelling argument, however, because anything else might have tipped somebody off about them. He wasn't ready for the world to know about it yet - part of him, not keen to see what those ridiculous girls would do when he was officially "off the market", and part of him was filled with guilt at what it took for him to actually admit his feelings.

The guilt ate at him through practice that day as he ran drills, while the student council began setting up tables and a few, sparse decorations. The fake mistletoe was their lynchpin for the plan, " _Nobody's going to be paying attention to how barren it is when there's an interactive feature at every doorway_ ," Minako had explained.

_"But, this is holly, not mistletoe, and it's plastic!"_ Odagiri had said, holding one of the sprigs in his hand.

Minako had rolled her eyes. _"People are gonna see what they want to see, and they want to see an excuse for PDA at school."_

_Is that what she wants?_ She had respected his need for privacy at school, but they didn't hide it at the dorm. Not that he was particularly physically affectionate when everyone was around, but she'd touch him, or his gaze would linger, and everyone had figured it out at this point. Akihiko had made it a point to tell Mitsuru, though, on one of their trips to visit Shinjiro. Mitsuru had given a small laugh. " _I know what he'd say. 'Took you long enough.' And I'd scold him, and then say, 'I'm happy for you, Akihiko.' And I truly am. We all deserve some brightness in our lives."_

Akihiko could have volunteered to help, he realized too late. Fuuka was helping with the food, as the student council had commandeered the cooking club's resources to make it. But no, he had worked himself into a sweat, gone to the hospital, and barely had time to get dressed and arrive in time for the dance. The dance he could have walked to with Yukari, Aigis, Junpei, and Chidori with, because if Yukari could handle Junpei's prickly girlfriend with questionable loyalties, he could have too. But now, Junpei and Chidori were swaying back and forth on the dancefloor way too closely, and Yukari and Aigis were with a few members of the archery club, talking to a few boys from the track team, and laughing in ways that, when Minako did it, made his stomach flutter.

He understood what that meant now. He knew what _she_ meant to him now, just in time before it all became too late. He had been the one who put distance between them when things were getting serious and he was getting nervous. He got _angry_ when he saw Shinjiro hanging out with Minako almost _every night_. _Jealous_ was what he actually was, but he didn't realize that at the time. When Shinjiro ended up in the hospital, he felt so guilty for building up resentment towards him. So many other things had come between them, and it was wrong to add a girl to the list, he decided, until Officer Kurosawa talked to him.

_"It finally got released from evidence, so I thought maybe you'd want it."_ The metal had been caved in, and most of the face destroyed, but it was clear that this was a pocket watch. Shinji's pocket watch, that he'd lost awhile ago. _"It slowed the bullet down. Probably what saved him."_

_"I thought he lost it."_

Kurosawa had exhaled slowly. _"Arisato got that thing from the lost and found at the police station a few days beforehand."_

Akihiko's blood had run cold. _"H-how are you sure? You remember this thing, specifically?"_

_"I couldn't forget her running in, leaning over my desk, and saying, 'Hello, Officer. I'm looking for a missing item, small, round, time-oriented, and slightly pretentious.'"_

Akihiko knew now why Kurosawa had been so careful with his words. Everything was so...fragile. It wasn't training, or handwork, or preparation that saved Shinjiro's life - it was luck. It was her deciding every little thing was important, and she was _right_ , and he hadn't even told her just how important he was to her.

As he made his way to the dessert table stationed outside of the practice room, he had to squeeze past a couple making liberal use of the doorway. _It's not even real. Real mistletoe is poisonous._

Minako's smile was just about as sunny as her sweater as she handed a plated cupcake to one of her classmates. "Sanada-senpai!" she chirped, not missing a beat. "Welcome to the dessert table! We specialize in things frosted in either red or green. They are...perfectly adequate, based on our budget."

"It's...impressive," he admitted, as every corner of the table had some cookie, cupcake, or candy bowl filled with presents, trees, and gingerbread folk. "How did you guys manage this much in such a short time?"

"Copious amounts of coffee," she said with a wicked smile. "Maybe a Mad Bull or two."

_Why the hell didn't I volunteer?_ "Your heart's gonna explode with that much caffeine."

"Consider it endurance training," she said, and nearly winked, but stopped herself when Odagiri approached.

"Hydrate, Arisato. You'll keel over otherwise, and that wouldn't set a very good example," he scolded.

Minako gave him a playful salute. "Sir, yes, sir!"

Odagiri rolled his eyes as he left. She took a drink of the water and turned her attention back to Akihiko. "Now, I highly recommend a gingerbread person, gender doesn't matter, but the absence of too much frosting seems appropriate for an athlete's sensibilities. And, I told Chihiro at the takoyaki stand to make sure the benevolent captain of the boxing team gets only the freshest and hottest pieces, so make sure you get some!" The couple had finally untangled themselves from the doorway and were making their way to Minako's booth.

"Does Mitsuru know you wanted to give me special treatment?" he asked, selecting a particularly inelegant gingerbread person of indeterminate gender. _The icing was definitely a rush job._

"I prefer to not burden our leader with paltry issues if I don't have to." She pressed a finger to her lips.

"C-can I help with anything?"

She pulled her finger away, glanced at it for a moment, then licked her lips. "We commandeered a room at the end of the hallway for food preparation. Can you go in there and grab me a wet rag?" She held her green and red-stained hands out. "I'm a little bit sticky."

Relief washed over him. "Can do!" He left and took a bite of the perfectly passable gingerbread. _Something to do. Thank goodness._ As he made his way, he thought he heard a couple of giggles and sped up his pace. When he arrived at the club room, he found it a disaster - dirty pans, flour, and icing all over the countertops, and crumbs all over the floor, without another soul in sight. He couldn't have been happier. _Once I deliver the washcloth, I can come back here and clean. Maybe by then, the dessert table will have slowed down and I can just stay with her for the rest of the night. My pursuers tend to give up quickly, anyway._ This, he could handle, and he'd be useful. As he rifled through the drawers to find a washcloth, he heard boisterous laughing in the hallway.

"No way, man, the only thing I will concede is that out of all of them, Fushimi is the only one who wouldn't break you in half for trying."

"But Yamagishi's nice, too!"

"Yeah, but she's not student _council_."

"Well, I for one, love powerful women and would happily be crushed by any of them."

"Such a feminist."

He wet the rag and wrung it out, a little too hard. _They think they can just strut around here and say things like that? And I'm the one who is..._

_Who is what?_

_Who cares about what people like that think?_

He blew past the gaggle of boys, gripping the rag. When he found the dessert table again, Minako was alone, leaning against the wall in a rare moment of quiet. The alert tension, the darting eyes, and the fidgeting hands were all absent. He'd seen this side of her rarely, in brief moments when she thought she was alone in the lobby, and for longer moments, when she fell asleep in his room.

"Hey," he said in a low voice, trying not to scare her.

"Hey." She opened her eyes and taking the offered rag. "That's so much better, thanks Sanada-senpai."

He bit his lip. "Can-can you take a break? Just for a little bit."

"Sure," she said. "Need some fresh air?"

"Kinda the opposite," he replied and took her hand before he chickened out. Eyebrow raised as high as she could manage, she followed him, only for him to stop them in the door to the practice room.

"I wanted to talk to you a bit," he said, trying to talk just loud enough for her to hear over the music.

"About?" she asked patiently. Her wide, red eyes and innocent expression were bathed in red and green lights strung along the wall. It made his heart race.

He let go of her hand and grabbed the back of his neck. "It's... it's...you, you said you'd call me Aki." He blushed, and he wanted nothing more than to run them back to the food prep room, but that would entirely defeat his purpose.

Both eyebrows went up. "Yeah, but we're at school. I thought we had rules about the differences."

He looked to the side and stared at the tartan print of her skirt for a moment. "Well, I, uh, have been thinking about those rules, and -"

She was holding her hands behind her back as if she was trying to behave and _not_ touch something. He pushed out a breath. "Those rules are more mine, aren't they? I asked for them, not you."

"You are free to have boundaries," she said patiently, parroting her countless other recitations of the phrase. "But right now, you need to realize where you are standing and that increasing numbers of people are staring at you because they've never seen the captain of the boxing club nervous."

_That's sweat. My forehead is definitely sweating._ He released his neck and held a hand out. "Underneath some plastic holly, I know. And... I'm a bad dancer, so, so I thought this would be better." He swallowed. "I want the school to know that I like you, and if you don't want them to know we're dating, you can just rebuff me right here. Or, if, if you're okay with it, then we can -"

She grabbed his hand, and he stopped talking immediately. "Let our bodies do the talking?" she finished, grinning.

His face was on fire at that point. "It sounded good in my head at the time! I was just -" She tugged his hand and stood on her toes before he could finish his thought, and in the next moment, they were kissing. Her hand found the back of his neck, and soon his found her lower back before he heard the wolf-whistles erupt from his boxing teammates, punctuated by a whooping that was distinctly Junpei's.

They parted, and he wanted to melt into the floor from embarrassment, but the flush on her cheeks kept him in place. "You're going to help me with the dessert booth now, aren't you, Aki?"

"What?" his head was spinning. Obviously, he would, but how'd they jump from public displays of affection to cupcakes?

"My boyfriend's going to have to protect me, ya know. People are gonna try and collect my hair now for voodoo dolls. You might not have heard it over the music, but that was the sound of young hearts breaking."

Through the corner of his eye, he could see Yukari getting lambasted with questions, and Mitsuru entering the practice room at the far entrance, utterly confused. "I - I'm on you. I mean _it_. I mean, protection duty!" He palmed his forehead. "Please just let me quit talking and put me to work."

"Deal!" She chuckled and tugged him along.

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was super fun to write, but made me realize I am apparently a huge subscriber to the Mad Max: Fury Road -esque plot of "Go from point A, to point B, then back to point A but sassier now."
> 
> I need to go re-watch that movie.


End file.
